Sunlight and Shade
by VilyaSage
Summary: Chapter 7! At last we come to the end of the tale. The Adepts aren't having the best of luck after the battle though...especially one Adept in particular...and Isaac and the others make their appearance! ...What's he staring at, that Adept there? R&R ~Vil
1. Sparkling Sea

Sunlight and Shade

By: Vilya (with help from muse-ish thing—you know who you are!)

Oh, that's right. I have to disclaim myself. Hello! Anything you've heard of before, I don't own. I won't tell you what I DO own until it comes into play. Any questions?

A/N: This has been drifting around in my head since a friend said 'Karagol' to me, and I thought of it, or the middle of it, so I built up a story, and here's the first chapter. For those who know ALWHI, there is more coming soon, I promise! So, enjoy this…prepare for quite a ride. And look! Picard's in it! YAHOO!!

Chapter One: Sparkling Sea

            The bright noon sun hit the ocean with blinding accuracy, causing the still water to sparkle, glint and glow, and generally causing Felix, standing at the prow, to blink spots from his eyes. He liked the sun as much as the next Adept, but this seemed to be taking it to the extreme. And the total lack of wind meant his dark hair hung in his face.

            "Much the same effect as the sun on snow," he said to himself, trying to get a decent view of anything ahead of them and failing quite miserably.

            "Snow, water, it's all the same," muttered Jenna. Felix looked at her for a moment, at her auburn hair and fiery brown eyes, then turned his face back to the water and smiled to himself. "Wet. I despise wet."

            "Well, at least you don't try to dry up the ocean anymore."

            "I _did_ try, with all the Psynergy I had, but Spirits, there's a lot of it!"

            "I doubt even the Mars Spirit itself could dry up the ocean. Besides, then we'd have to _walk_ from Lemuria to Gondowan."

            "Are you two quite finished?" a voice called. Felix and Jenna turned, but no one was there. Both of them looked up then, their eyes following the tall mast of the sailing vessel to the occupant of its highest point.

            "Ivan! Good morning!" Jenna called, waving. "Can you see anything better from up there? Down here it's all…glinty."

            "Glinty?" Felix and Ivan asked at the same time. Jenna shrugged.

            "It sounded good."

            "Spoken very like Garet," Felix remarked.

            "Spirits, no, not that!"

            "To answer your question, no, it's not any better from up here. The sun kicks out everything. And the water is _completely_ still, aside from the ripples we create." Ivan sighed. He wasn't usually one for complaining, not while he was so high up with such a view. But the air was as still as the water, and it was getting _hot_.

            "Makes me wish for home," Felix said as he and Jenna turned back to the rail. "I seem to have spent so little time in Vale over the past four years or so."

            "Home? Just left," said a voice from behind them. A tall, blue-haired, gold-eyed man joined them. "Your turn, Felix."

            "Aw, Picard, it's _your_ ship. Certainly you have something less energy-draining for me to be doing?"

            "The Orb requires Psynergy. You know that. And I'm pretty much out for the day. Plus, it isn't _my _ship, it's on loan." Picard smiled jokingly. "Unless you'd rather row this thing by hand? The sails obviously aren't going to be much help."

            "Ivan could raise a wind," Jenna suggested.

            "_Ivan_ already spent his Psynergy ration on propelling this thing," called the Adept in question. "He would very much like to raise a wind, but he knows his companions have had experience with what happens when a tired, hot, cranky Ivan tries to make things move."

            "Right. See you in a few hours," Felix said, gladly leaving the conversing Jupiter and Mars Adepts (not to mention a confused Picard) behind. Jenna sighed, adjusted her hair for about the thousandth time, trying to keep it off the back of her neck, then turned and walked belowdecks. 

            "It won't be any cooler down there," Picard mused. "Well, not cool enough to make a difference. But the galley is in that direction…perhaps lunch is a good idea." One or another of his Djinn gave a comment on the questionable sanity of a Lemurian mariner who spoke to himself, but Picard ignored it. 

            Ivan found himself alone yet again, and while he usually liked it, the humidity was really starting to get to him. They were surrounded by ocean so unmoving and vast it might as well have been the Lamakan Desert. 

            Several hours later, after a break for lunch and a few delightfully cool moments of soft breezes, Ivan was dozing off in the crow's nest when he saw it. He sat up, rubbed his eyes, blinked a few times, trying to make sure it was really there.

            _Picard!_

            "What?!" asked the Mercury Adept aloud. He sat up quickly and banged his head on a low piece of ceiling. "Ivan? Is that you?"

            _I see something! Come up here and tell me I'm seeing mirages or something! _Please_ tell me I'm seeing something!_

            "Alright, alright. In the middle of a nap and you get woken up by hallucinating Jupiter Adepts with the—great god of the north winds!" Picard yelped upon emerging onto the deck. 

            _I am not conspiring with Boreas, Picard, Ivan thought tersely. __I am merely asking that you confirm that that is indeed a very large storm and in the center of it is a very large…thing._

            "Some sort of sea monster," Jenna surmised. She and Felix stood together at the bow, eyes fixed on the dark, vast mass of thunderheads in front of them. "It certainly is a large storm, though. Can we go around?"

            "I doubt it," Felix said, looking back to Picard for confirmation. The Lemurian nodded.

            "It's too wide. We'd never make it to the outside edge before it got to us—the wind's picked up and it's headed our way." He looked up at Ivan and frowned contemplatively. "Ivan! Get down here!"

            "What for? This is the most lightning I've seen in one place in a good long time!" Ivan was practically jumping with happiness. The Jupiter element present was, in effect, charging him, and he felt his Psynergy returning with every moment. 

            "Could we turn around and use the wind to outrun it?" Felix asked. "Ivan could whip us up some more."

            "I think this…this beast…I believe the storm follows _it_, instead of the other way around," Picard said. "It would, eventually, catch up with us."

            "Then what _do_ we do?" Jenna asked. "Somehow I know this will involve getting wet."

            Before Picard could answer, the first heavy drops of rain began to pelt them. Ivan, high above, was having the time of his life, laughing both at the insane rush of power and at Jenna's ironic prediction of wetness. 

Flashes of lightning and the loud booms of thunder quickly followed the rain as the storm overtook them. Ivan, still in the crow's nest, laughed rather maniacally and threw his arms wide. 

            "Ivan, what are you doing up there?" Felix called. He doubted Ivan heard him over the roaring winds and booming thunder. Until he got an answer, that is.

            "Having the time of my life!"

            "We got that impression! Are you aware those lightning bolts can kill you?" Felix realized the absurdity of this statement almost immediately. The Jupiter Adept _controlled_ lightning. There probably wasn't a bolt out there strong enough to harm him. 

            Picard sighed, looking at the giant beast that was drawing nearer as the ship was pulled farther into the storm. It didn't seem to want to harm them, but it might do so anyway, inadvertently. 

            A lightning bolt struck the ship then, scorching the deck and breaking free part of the rail. That part flew skyward, slamming into Ivan at a dangerously high speed. Ivan moved to duck, but a large wave crashed into the ship, knocking him off balance and _into _the flying debris, which smacked into his head.

            "Dang. I hope they're…alright…" Ivan mumbled before he lost consciousness. He remained slumped over one edge of the crow's nest as the ship was almost literally tossed about by the force of the storm. Lightning struck the mast several times, and each time a stronger wave accompanied it. 

            "Ivan's acting like a super-attractive lightning rod!" Felix shouted above the crashing waves and booming thunder. "Someone's got to get him down from there!"

            "I'll go!" Picard yelled back, and he had begun scaling the rope ladders leading to the crow's nest when the water beast's tail lashed towards the ship. It collided with the mast, sending the top two thirds, Ivan included, careening far out into the stormy sea.

            Picard was jerked violently around, eventually crashing to the deck in a mass of splintering boards. Felix and Jenna ran that way, but the largest wave yet hit them, knocking them both to the deck hard and fast. Before either could get themselves up again, the beast's tail smacked the ship, splitting it almost cleanly down the middle and scattering Adepts, supplies and ship parts quite far.

            In the midst of the terrible storm, Felix fought to stay afloat. Something was definitely wrong, as one of his arms had gone numb and wasn't working as he'd planned it to. Waves came up and over his head, and one broke on top of him, driving him downward. He tried to break the surface again, but something slammed him in the stomach, knocking out all his air. He just barely registered a faint green glow as the world went dark.

            Jenna was having an easier time of it, holding onto a piece of wreckage that floated, but of course her mind (and her Djinn) would offer only complaints. "I never did like the water," she mumbled angrily. Her staff floated in the water nearby, and she reached out for it, pulling it closer to her. Something large and solid thunked her on the head, making a resounding ring echo on her mind. She was out, then, unconscious but still holding her piece of destroyed ship.

            And Picard, who had remained aware even as he had crashed through the deck and into the galley below, had been sinking with his respective half of ship. He fought his way free of wood, rope and kitchen supplies, then gave in to the overwhelming need to breathe. He gagged on water, finding it amazing when he collapsed onto what felt like a solid surface, and closed his eyes, and knew no more.

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Vil: Ok, so that's chapter one. How do you like it? And feel free to guess on what happens next.

Kaede: And keep your eyes open for any other new things. ::laughs evilly::

Vil: pssst! Kae! Your plan-ish-thing!

Kaede: Oh, yes. You see, erm…oh, out with it, then. There is a GS author by the name of Feonyx. Writes hilarious stuff. So this is me (my plan, even) asking you wonderful fanfiction people to review it. ASKING. I don't beg.

Vil: Anyone who says she does learns _real _fast. 

Kaede: so, um…aw, geez, you're making me feel G-ish.

Vil: Good. Now, on to the reviews, if you will.

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	2. Dark Sky

Sunlight and Shade

A/N: Ah. Cliffhangers. Not nearly as evil as Midnight C's in chapter four of Breeze, but hey, if she doesn't come and attack me, I will only IMAGINE my attack on her. Fair deal, that. I'm thinking on…less that 15 chapters for this, if you wanted an estimate. ALWHI will be on hold for a SHORT (note the SHORT) while, because when ideas find their way into my head on their strangely twisted path to get there, if I do not put them on paper (computer-simulated or otherwise) they tend to cause violent and silent implosion. So.

**Midnight C:** Ah, I should have mentioned this. This story takes place AFTER the events in both games. Felix, Jenna, Ivan and Picard went to Lemuria (why Ivan and not Sheba or all eight remains to be told, of course) and are on their way back when the storm hits.

**Triad:** I don't pick on _just_ Ivan! I picked on everyone. You just wait and see, now. Oh, and, for He Who Should Leave The Fanfiction World (you know who he is), if I hear one word from you on this, too bad for you sir, because I don't listen. (No, VI, I don't mean you.)

**Jupiter Girl:** I don't mention it here, but the greenish glow relates to what happens when the Adepts and Tret Tree's turn-people-into-trees power collide.

Chapter Two:  Dark Sky

            The storm was over. The sun had set, and the moon had reached the apex of its nightly rise and fall. The ocean stirred in gentle rolls, and broken pieces of a Lemurian sailing ship rose and fell with the motion. Among them was the unconscious figure of a girl.

            Jenna awoke to find herself adrift in the dark sea. Her staff was clutched in her hand, and her head was pounding like the thunder that had been last in her thoughts. She was holding onto, or rather slumped over, a large chunk of wood. Her first instinct was to fall back into beckoning sleep, but the voices of Isaac, Mia, Felix and Picard, warning against such action, came back to haunt her.

            Felix. "By the Spirits, brother, if you didn't survive I will bring you back and kill you myself!" Jenna muttered angrily. In the night it was difficult to see, but she did make out some planks nearby lashed together with a length of rope. This gave her an idea.

            Swimming as good as she ever had (learning to swim had never sat well with any Mars Adept) she reached the planks and pulled them to her current wood chunk. Grinning, she grabbed the rope and looped it around both pieces a few times. 

            She pulled herself up onto the makeshift raft. "At least I'm out of the water," she sighed, setting her staff down beside her. Something clicked in her mind, and she looked down at the staff in the dim moonlight, another idea forming in her mind and a smile breaking the concentrated look on her face.

+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+

            As his eyes opened, the blue Psynergy bubble surrounding Picard faded. He rolled to the side and coughed up water, subconsciously giving thanks to be alive and realizing that it was night and he had somehow gotten to dry land.

            With a groan, he sat up and looked around. The ocean was in front of him. Long stretches of beach were to his left and his right, and behind him was forest. He looked skyward to see a mass of dark clouds.

            "Mercury tell me it isn't more rain," he muttered. When, after a few moments, no rain began, he sighed in relief. He'd had quite enough of rain, not to mention the thunder, lightning, and ship-breaking (also Adept-hurling) winds that went with it.

            Thinking of the wreck brought into his mind the fact that he was not exactly in the best condition to be washed up on some island. Closing his eyes, he focused his Psynergy on himself and felt the pain dissipate, eventually becoming nothing.

            Of course, the next logical thought struck him as hard as he had impacted the boat. "Ivan. Felix. Jenna. Oh no." Standing and stretching a little, he glanced down along the right stretch of pebbly sand. Nothing. Well, nothing that looked remotely human. There _was_, however, an unusually large log with scraps of sail hanging from it. _The mast_, thought Picard. He refused to pursue that thought and instead turned a half-circle so he was looking the other way, up the rest of the beach.

            Far up along the tide line, water washing over him as the waves rolled in, was a disheveled and dead-to-the-world figure that much resembled Felix. In fact, it _was_ Felix. Muttering a Lemurian curse, Picard began to head in that direction. _Felix, if you're dead, Jenna will kill you_, he thought, not even bothering to laugh along with the Djinn voices at the odd statement.

            He reached Felix, knelt in the sand beside him and rolled him over. The Venus Adept's answering groan brought relief to Picard's mind—his face had already (in fact almost automatically) set itself in a show-no-emotion blank and slightly thoughtful position. Standing again, he half-carried Felix farther away from the incoming tide. How he knew it was an incoming and not outgoing tide, while still a mystery to him, was no longer the source of much contemplation, and hadn't been for years.

            Sighing again, he seated himself on a large rock and called again on his Psynergy.

+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+

            The people of Sinelsol Island pondered the recent happenings. The Beast of the Bright Sea had brought them a gift, or so it had told the Elder. A gift to aid them in their time of greatest need. But looking upon this gift, small and not very extraordinary-looking, they wondered indeed how much of a gift it was. 

            "The Beast of the Bright Sea has never been at fault," said the Elder when she heard the complaints. "He says he found the gift when his brother, the Serpent of Dark Storms, was playing in the waters far east of here and found it."

            "You speak of the gift as 'it'," spoke up one of the residents of the island village, which was called Yueivar. "Do you not know the proper name?"

            "I do not. The Beast of the Bright Sea did not tell me, though he claims the Serpent of Dark Storms would know. It was said several times by a human of the Water."

            The thought of a human of the Water brought hope into the islanders' thoughts. Perhaps, finally, someone was nearby who could help return to them their bright future.

+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+

            His first thought at regaining consciousness was that he felt like a dragon had chewed him up, decided he wasn't worth it and spit him out. His second thought was that this state of being was rapidly diminishing. The third thought was something along the lines of 'why in the world am I on dry land and how did I get here from cold ocean?' and was enough to bring him fully awake. 

            He opened his eyes slowly, and his gaze met a fierce, worried-looking, golden-eyed one. "Picard?"

            "Felix."

            "You alright?"

            "Well enough. You?"

            "You tell me. You seem to know better than I do, anyway," Felix said, slowly pushing himself into a sitting position.

            "Hey, you're alive. Can't ask for more than that, right?"

            "_Picard_."

            "Alright, alright. Geez, you Venus Adepts are pushy ones. Anyway, there's nothing wrong with you now. Well…nothing that I could fix," Picard added with a grin. Felix sighed exasperatedly.

            "Specifics. Why's my left arm numb?"

            "It _was_ broken."

            "Oh really? The way I saw it, somewhere in the middle of all that mayhem, it decided it didn't like my plan and to do something entirely different," Felix said dryly. "I _meant_, if you fixed it, why can't I feel it?"

            "I wasn't finished, is why. Now sit still, or else," Picard said with an evil cackle.

            "Tell me," Felix said as Picard's Psynergy surrounded him again, "is this strange attitude an attribute of all Lemurians, or just sailing ones, or just you?"

            "Tell _me _you didn't just twist Ivan's line around to fit your situation."

            "I did."

            "Thought so. How's that?"

            "Better. So where are we?"

            "Search me. I'm pretty sure it's not more than a day from…from the storm." Picard stood and looked around. For the first time he realized there were trees behind him, in fact a veritable forest of them. "We can't go forward without a boat, and walking the beach, while probably an act that will eventually bring us to civilization, might not be such a good idea in the dark. Then again, the forest is a _worse _idea…"

            "Wayard calling Picard! Stop it! You're babbling in that way."

            "That way?"

            "Like you're trying to take my mind off of something else."

            "Oh. Sorry. Reflex. Do you happen to have a better plan?" Felix, about to reply, whirled around instead at the sound of a frightened cry. Standing there was a young girl and two children. The kids were hiding behind the girl's skirt, peeking out curiously.

            "Hello," said Picard. "Our ship was wrecked in a storm at sea, and we ended up here. Might you have a place for us to stay the night? Or, at least, what remains of it?"

            "I-I-I can take you back to Yueivar," the girl said hesitantly. 

            "You-way-var?" Felix asked incredulously.

            "My village. It's the second-largest on the island."

            "We're on an island, then?" Picard asked. "I didn't think there were islands with villages I didn't know between Lemuria and Gondowan. Though, Yueivar does remind me of the Lemurian word for rainstorm. Quite ironic, if I do say so."

            "You did say so. Now…um…sorry, but what's your name?" Felix asked the girl.

            "Cura," she said, more confident now. "These are my brothers, Daniel and Michael. Come. I will take you to the village Elder. She will be able to help you."

            "Good, because as soon as the sun rises I should like to get sailing for home," Felix said.

            "It doesn't," said one of the boys.

            "What?" Picard asked.

            "The clouds cover the sky all the time now. Cura says it wasn't always that way, but it was when I was born," said the other. 

            "Before you ask," Cura said, holding up a hand as they entered the forest, "let me take you to speak with the Elder. She can answer your questions better than I."

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Vil: Oh. I own Cura, Daniel, Michael, Sinelsol Island, Yueivar (lluevar, for you Spanish-speakers) and the Elder. And the unnamed villagers. 

Picard: Look! I'm a muse!

Vil: Yay! Oh, and those of you who THOUGHT Picard was musin' for you, I went and replaced him with a perfect replica. Exactly the same. 

Picard: No one steal me. Or else. 

Vil: So, that's that then. 

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	3. Shadowed Streets

Sunlight and Shade

A/N: Good morning, good morning! Wonderful days all! My cold is gone (after a week)!! So here, as a celebration, is the edited, revised, on the whole better chapter three. Enjoy!

Chapter Three: Shadowed Streets

            "Dawn draws near," Cura said as she, her brothers, Picard and Felix came to the edge of the forest, seeing the village situated in a shallow valley not far away. 

            "At last, a chance to see the sun," Picard muttered, still thinking about what one or the other of the twin boys had said. The sun didn't rise on this island? How silly.

            "Picard," Felix said quietly, and the Lemurian looked down (but only slightly) at him. Felix _had_ been uncharacteristically silent, even for him, for almost the entire walk, Picard realized. "I…do you think…well, Ivan and Jenna…"

            "Relax, Felix. If we survived, so did they. Psynergy protects us all, remember."

            "I was told no to mention Psynergy to outsiders," Felix muttered, and Picard sighed. He was too used to hanging around villages, cities and entire _continents_ full of Adepts. 

            Neither of them said much else as they passed under the archway that was the village's gate. There were few people about in what the Adepts imagined was around six in the morning, but those people quickly gathered around the new arrivals.

            "Who are they?" "What are they doing here?" "Do they know of the Gift?" "Are they those spoken of?" "Bring the Elder." That last voice, standing out among the seven or so villagers, belonged to Cura. She hadn't needed to say anything, for the Elder was quickly approaching them. Surprisingly quickly, thought Felix, for one who was the Elder in both title and age. 

            "Welcome to Yueivar," she said to them. "No doubt you have walked far in the night and desire rest."

            "It would be nice," Picard admitted, absently rubbing his sore shoulder, still aching from slamming into the deck. 

            "Please, come with me. You may stay in my home. When you are rested, I shall answer what questions I can." Obediently, and rather gratefully, Picard and Felix followed the woman to one of the largest dwellings in the village. Despite the fact that Picard had done his best with his Psynergy, both the Adepts were exhausted and sore after the long, draining walk. Not to mention they already wished to see the sun, though neither actually believed it wouldn't rise. 

            Shown to a guest room, Picard and Felix thought nothing of collapsing onto the beds and dropping into sleep.

+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+

            Jenna sat on her makeshift raft, watching through slitted eyes as the sun began to rise in front of her. She was barely able to make out a dot that might have been land, of course right in line with the sun, so, dismissing the thought that a weapon such as her staff shouldn't be used in such a way, she dipped it into the water and began to row.

            "Someone is going to pay dearly for making me do this," she growled as she paddled on into the full force of the blazing sun.

+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+

            The morning passed, and word spread around the village that two mysterious men had arrived. One with blue hair and eyes like the long-missing sun, and the other with brown hair and eyes as piercing green as spring's new growth.

            Felix was the first to wake, sleepily rising and washing his face in the provided water. Much more aware than he had been before he slept, he realized that his sword and bag were still attached to his belt, and further examination revealed that nothing was missing from the bag either. "It does make sense, if my Psynergy really did surround me," he mused.

            "You're awake!" said a surprised voice from the doorway. Felix turned to see one of the little boys from the day—or night—before. 

            "I am, but my friend isn't. Tell me, is there a place to eat nearby? I think I'd like some breakfast."

            "Breakfast?" laughed the boy. "It's past midday already. You might join the Elder, and my brother and sister and me, for lunch. Bring your friend too."

            "I might take you up on that," Felix said with a smile, a rare occurrence for him. There was something about little kids, something that reminded him of when he and Jenna had been younger…Spirits. Jenna. What if she was…what if she hadn't survived?

            "Hunger is not a good way to wake up," said a decisive voice behind him, and Felix turned to see Picard now standing, brushing the hair out of his eyes, though it would only fall back in them eventually. "Did I hear food mentioned?"

            "Lunch," Felix said, forcing thoughts of his sister and Ivan out of his mind. "Downstairs, I suppose. Come on."

            "Lunch?" Picard asked. "With no light coming in the windows?"

            "Please don't tell me you believed what that kid said last night."

            "It just seems odd, that's all. Noon in most places, during the summer months at least, is bright, hot, and usually wakes one up."

            "And we're awake. Look—we've even got places at the table," Felix said, his stomach growling even as he spoke. He and Picard sat on one side of the table, opposite the Elder and Cura. The boys were seated at either end. All were silent for a while, eating, with Felix and Picard eating considerably more than the rest. 

            "This is good," Picard commented, setting down his fork as he finished. "Better than a lot of places I've been."

            "Thank you," Cura said, smiling a little. The Elder smiled as well, and nodded. 

            "You two have many questions. Before you ask them, let me start from the beginning," she said. Sipping her drink thoughtfully for a moment, she set down her empty glass and began, coincidentally if not purposely, at the beginning.

_            "Many years ago, when my grandfather was Elder of Yueivar, a man visited the island. He was young, lively, and curious, very curious. He asked many questions and sought to learn everything that Sinelsol Island had for him to learn, to know all its secrets. He had a strange name, and was obviously from a strange land._

_            "However, some of the island's secrets were not meant to be found by this man. He set loose a monster of fury, and of terrible power. It had slept for centuries, guarding a power. This power was let loose with the awakening of the monster, and the island grew dark. The sun no longer rose—instead, clouds shadowed the island day and night, and no light shone through._

_            "Eventually, the man left the island. After many years the monster slept again, and the clouds parted. There was celebrating, and life went back to the way it had been. I was elder of the village by then, and I was happy to see the sun again._

_            "But the man returned. Older now, but still as curious and irritatingly absent-minded as he had been so many years past. And he woke the beast again. And the darkness descended. He left shortly after, for who knows where, but we are glad he is gone._

            "Now the residents of the island fear that the sun can only return if the monster is destroyed. The Beast of the Bright Sea has brought us a gift from the sea, given to him by his brother, the Serpent of Dark Storms. The Gift is here, in Yueivar. Perhaps you know of it."

            "Wow," Felix said. "It is true. The sun really doesn't rise here. Wow."

            "What is the monster that guards the power like?" Picard asked. The Elder closed her eyes and sighed.

            "No one knows. No one who has gone to try and defeat it has ever returned to this village," Cura said solemnly. "My father went, a few years ago." Picard and Felix looked at each other for a moment. Could it really be that bad?

            "This gift you keep talking about," Felix said at length. "Will it help us?"

            "It may. Come. I will show you." The Elder rose, and the Adepts followed her outside—and what they saw astounded them. Clouds almost as black as the night itself shrouded the sky, and there was barely any light that did not come from the lamps outside of each dwelling. For a moment, Felix and Picard stared upward in something that resembled a mix of confusion, awe and apprehension. 

            Eventually, getting over the shock as their eyes adjusted (it had been very bright inside), they followed the Elder down the now-crowded street. Everyone stared at them, and whispers floated around. Felix heard them, but had no interest in what they said. Picard, though he was curious, had his mind focused on other things. 

            "I knew it!" he muttered to himself as they approached an inn-like building. Felix turned to regard him curiously. "One of them is here."

            "One of whom?"

            "An Adept, at least, but most probably Ivan or Jenna."

            "How can you be sure?"

            "I stopped asking that years ago." Before Felix could think of a sarcastic reply, the Elder was motioning them up a set of stairs and into a room. This room was actually dim compared to the others, though bright in contrast to the afternoon sky. And in the room's single bed was a rather beaten-up version of Ivan.

            "Gods," whispered Felix. "What did this?"

            "The Serpent of Dark Storms took him to the cavern where the guardian beast resides, not realizing it had been awoken again, and this is what the monster did. The Beast of the Bright Sea found him and brought him here."

            There issued forth then a long stream of syllables, coming from Picard and in a language that Felix didn't speak and so assumed to be Lemurian. The Elder laughed when Picard was finished. 

            "Quite true. Many of the island's residents think the same," she said, still smiling. Despite her obvious age, her laughter was clear and seemed unaffected by any years. 

            "Picard?" Felix asked, and he reflexively took a step back when he noticed the fire burning in the Lemurian's golden eyes. 

            "My opinion of this monster," he offered in explanation. "The fact that I use mostly attacking Psynergy seems to forever be forgotten—or used in some sort of ironic dry humor—which is an ironic statement in itself—by whatever Powers Be," he added. Felix was about to reply, but Picard was already wherever it was he went when he used his Psynergy. Physically, of course, he was standing beside Ivan, one blue-glowing hand on the Jupiter Adept's shoulder, but mentally, who knew? Felix sighed.

            "So, you speak Lemurian?" he asked the Elder, and she nodded. Her eyes were intent on Picard, though, watching what he was doing. Felix resisted the urge to sigh for what felt like the millionth time that day.

            A few moments later, the blue light of Psynergy faded and Picard's eyes opened seconds before Ivan's. Surprisingly, the Mercury Adept looked…greenish. "I think…I need to sit down," he mumbled, and the Elder quickly got a chair for him.

            "Picard? Felix? What in the world?" Ivan asked, sitting up and looking at himself rather amazedly. "The last thing I remember is lightning striking the ship…and maybe a sort of…blurry recollection of sharp objects…"

            "Welcome back, Ivan. Listen, there's something you should know about this island—" Felix began, but was cut off rather abruptly.

            "Island?" Ivan asked frantically. "We're on an island? An island where…it's always dark, and…and they never see the sun?"

            "Well, yes…don't tell me you saw this in some premonition and decided not to mention anything?"

            "No, it was a dream, actually. Right before I spotted the storm—it must have been only yesterday, I don't feel as if that much time has passed—anyway, right before I called to Picard, I was starting to fall asleep and I thought it was a dream. Picard? You don't look so good."

            "I'm alright. That just took _way _more energy than I was prepared for. You were pretty banged up, Ivan." Picard closed his eyes and sat with his head between his hands and his elbows resting on his legs. "If this monster can do that to you, the thought of facing it truly does scare me."

            "Look at it this way—we've fought worse. Nothing could have been worse than that dragon in Vale," Ivan pointed out. 

            "There were eight of us then, and one of them wasn't sick from Psynergy loss," Felix said, a wry grin finding its way onto his face. Picard glared blearily up at him.

            "So I shall remind you of that time you tried to open a giant crack in the land to reach Jenna and Mia in that cave, and no one could wake you afterwards for a week," he said, tartness in his voice.

            "You used _that much_ Psynergy?" Ivan asked in an astonished voice. "It couldn't have been that bad."

            "It was. Can we discuss something else? Like how to beat this thing?" 

            There was a sudden crash noise from outside—predictably, just as Felix had begun to speak. The three Adepts hurried outside, Picard inevitably bringing up the rear and not liking it. Well, not liking the fact that they were about to fight and he was so low on Psynergy. There was, however, on the edge of his consciousness, the beginnings of that strange sensation felt when one knows that wet weather is on its way.

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Vil: Voila! Chapter Three, for your reading (and reviewing) pleasure. Chapter Four approacheth, so be watching!!

Disclaimer here, so I don't ruin the character things for you: I forgot to add that I own the Beast of the Bright Sea and the Serpent of Dark Storms, as well as this guardian monster. I own the plot-idea of the Jenna-and-Mia-stuck-in-a-cave thing, and I've already written the story of the dragon in Vale. Bonus points to he or she who knows the curious man in the Elder's tale. Later days!


	4. Striking Display

Sunlight and Shade

A/N: Of course, the title came about before I knew they were keeping Shade as a Djinni name. Ah well. She really has nothing to do with this except as a battle role. Promise.

**Triad, Alex, Jupiter Girl, Griffinkhan:** Did I give that much away? But yes, Kraden is certainly a troublemaker. 

Chapter Four: Striking Display

         "Felix?" Ivan asked, in a very unconcerned, casual, almost conversational way.

         "Yes, Ivan?" Felix replied in the same sort of tone.

         "I believe that thing over there is the owner of not one or even two but three heads."

         "I would tend to agree."

         "You do love that double-meaning kind of sentence, don't you?"

         "How can you be so casual in the face of disaster?" asked a voice. Felix, Ivan and Picard turned around to see Cura standing there, a frightened and rather annoyed look on her face. Felix dimly recalled the expression as a familiar one, though whom it had belonged to he wasn't going to guess at.

         "It is quite simple," Picard began, in the sort of dry, irritated tone that came with losing too much Psynergy and then being faced with what appeared to be a Chimera Mage. "You see, this sort of thing is what keeps us from becoming paranoid with fear."

         "Disaster?" Ivan asked. "I see one fallen building, yes, but it doesn't look like there was anyone inside it. And if there was, Felix will have a second job to do before long."

         "I'll set my Djinn," Felix replied casually. "Come on, let's get rid of this thing before I really _do_ need to use Revive."

         "Preferably, if you do, let it not be on one of us," Picard added. With that, and a nod of agreement from Ivan, they headed across the mostly flat village at a slow but deliberate pace. 

         "Alright everyone. It has three heads. There are three of us. This shouldn't be a problem. We've handled these before." From Felix's tone, you wouldn't think that a Chimera Mage about five times larger than its normal size was anything at all to be concerned about. Nor the fact that, instead of being a misleading pastel pinkish-orange, it was a dark brownish-green. 

         "Some sort of bird on one head, a form of large feline on the second, and a goat on the third," Ivan commented. Their pace quickened considerably as the huge Chimera Mage lifted its version of a foot and made to stomp on another building. 

         "Eagle, lion, and goat, yes," Picard said, not enjoying the flat-out run they had reached. The three Adepts stopped several feet away from the creature, and Ivan calculated the odds mentally. 

         "I am distinctly reminded of the climb to the Aerie of Venus Lighthouse," he remarked, not bothering to publicly announce the odds and feeling that this statement was sufficient enough to provide the information that this battle was probably an even fight, considering that Picard was low on Psynergy. 

         The beast let out a roar that broke the sound barrier several times over, knocking several villagers to the ground and sending the Adepts staggering back. Balls of something resembling dark fire began to rain down from the grey-black clouds, and where it hit, be it ground or tree or home, it burned like acid with a sickening sizzling noise. 

         "Watch out for that," Felix said as Ivan sidestepped a blob of it. "I don't know what it is, but it certainly isn't the normal Chimera Mage barrage."

         "That it is not," Picard agreed. "I thank whoever is listening for the ability to regain Psynergy naturally. Before anything else is destroyed, let's destroy this."

         "I thought you were against violence," Ivan remarked, followed immediately by, "Squall!" The lightning-laced streaking violet form of his Jupiter Djinni launched itself into the giant monster, striking with considerable force but barely seeming to faze the creature. 

         "I am, when at all possible. But something this big, literally, is not going to go away on its own, and frankly I have a personal grudge against anything with acid flame as a weapon. Diamond Burg!" A large chunk of ice appeared from nowhere and solidified itself around the mutant Chimera Mage. With surprising speed, Picard drew his sword and leapt upon the frozen beast, slicing and hacking and stabbing too fast for the eye to follow. 

         "I still say that's the best attack any of us ever got," Ivan commented to Felix. "It almost makes me wish I was born Mercury."

         "Please, let's not have the 'multiverse' discussion again. I get quite lost contemplating the fact that there are infinite copies of myself running rampant elsewhere in this dimension. Odyssey!" The air around them turned a bright shade of green, and from the sky a giant, glowing sword appeared, made entirely of Psynergy, and impaled the giant monster. Another such blade, this time from the ground, did likewise.

         The third and largest blade seemed to come from Felix himself, and when all three Psynergy swords came together, there was a bright flash and a screeching sound from the giant Chimera Mage. Said sound had Felix on his knees with his hands over his ears, and Picard in a similar pose somewhere behind and to the left of the monster, but Ivan took it calmly, seemingly not hearing it at all.

         "Spark Plasma!" he yelled, taking a short moment to enjoy the rush of power that came with the torrent of violet lightning bolts. "I take back what I said. I like Jupiter power." 

         With another glass-shattering cry, the Chimera Mage let loose again its acid-like dark fire. Ivan was quick enough to dodge the raining fire, and Picard called on Shade as a shield against the barrage. Felix, watching the sky, rolled to one side as the monster swiped a paw at him, stopping on his back and barely having time to cry out as a ball of dark acid slammed into his chest. 

         Both Picard and Ivan froze in mid-cast at the sound of a very loud, horrified screech. A look at the Chimera Mage confirmed the fact that it was not the source of the noise. From across a good distance the Mercury and Jupiter Adepts looked at each other with nearly identical puzzled and concerned faces. Ivan then realized it was Felix who was screaming in such a way, and the realization must have shown on his face, because Picard's eyes suddenly seemed to be on fire. Ivan shared similar feelings.

         "I summon Thor!" Ivan yelled, his Psynergy powering the forthcoming of the strongest Jupiter summons. A slightly see-through version of the god appeared, wielding a giant hammer from which came bright lightning. "One more should do it!" Ivan yelled as the specter of Thor disappeared.

         "Loud and clear," Picard said, wincing as some of the dark fire broke through Shade's barrier, but ignoring that for the most part and concentrating on the use of whatever Psynergy he had left. "I summon Boreas!" 

         "The great Mercury summon of frozen spit," Ivan added quietly. Still, he did enjoy watching the rain of ice chunks as they slammed the giant beast. For a moment, he paused, considering the fact that their Psynergy may have been a greater danger to the village than the Chimera Mage, but his thoughts were shaken by the fact that the beast had yet to fall. Picard, however, was currently preoccupied, running full tilt toward Felix. 

         "Guess this one's mine," Ivan said, and would have shrugged if one shoulder hadn't just been clipped by something sharp thrown at an extremely high velocity, headed for the Chimera Mage. "Hey! Who's tossing those shu—Cura?" Ivan looked at her strangely. In her hand was yet another sharp object, this time a dagger.

         "My apologies, Ivan," she said, anger in her voice. Ivan chose, quite wisely, not to comment, instead taking the opportunity to cast Destruct Ray. Finally, after what seemed like years, the giant Chimera Mage fell and disappeared. 

         "It always bothered me that there was nothing left over," Ivan mused. "I mean, not even ashen remains. Something as big as that, there should at least be a little dust pile." That said, Ivan headed at a slow walk for Picard and Felix, completely ignoring the stares of the villagers. _They might as well get used to it_, he thought with a mental grin. 

         Outwardly, however, he was wearing a concerned frown. He reached Picard, kneeling on one side of Felix's now-unconscious form, and did likewise on the opposite side. "Picard, sorry if I break your concentration, but I don't like the look on your face."

         "I believe you," Picard said quietly. "He is alive, though. That's always good."

         After a long pause in which Ivan's gaze found focus on various trees, buildings and suddenly interesting rocks, he looked back at Picard again. The Lemurian's eyes were now closed, and his face looked, if anything, frustrated. With himself. 

         "Well?" Ivan asked hesitantly. He'd never enjoyed this sort of thing. 

         Picard opened his eyes and sighed. "This should not be a problem. I can fix this, easily. At the risk of sounding arrogant, it would not even take much effort."

         "Except?"

         "Except I have no Psynergy. None. As dry as the Sulhalla Desert. And I do not…I do not think we have the time to wait until I get enough back."

         "You have Djinn," Ivan pointed out, keeping the tone of his voice even.

         "Any helpful ones are in recovery from summoning Boreas. How about you?"

         "I never had any that could heal. Sheba did…wait!" 

         "We do not have time for that either," Picard said dryly. "If you have a plan, spill it."

         "Ether."

         "What?"

         "Ether the Djinni. She…oh, get on with it!" Ivan said, because the first time he'd spoken her name, Ether had appeared in a flash of purple light. The Jupiter Djinni disappeared equally as quickly, and for a moment Picard glowed violet. 

         "Psynergy?" he asked aloud.

         "Ether replenishes Psynergy," Ivan confirmed. "Not all of it, but some."

         "Enough," countered Picard. "Just enough." Holding a hand over Felix and closing his eyes, he quietly said, "Pure Ply." The collective gasp from the villagers brought Ivan back to the real world. 

         _We have just shown the island rather large and powerful displays of Psynergy, something we aren't supposed to do even _with_ the world no longer needing to be saved_, Ivan thought. _Not to mention we're still missing Jenna_. 

         Felix's eyes snapped open, and he sat up quickly, looking around as though expecting something large and heavy to come crashing down onto his head. 

         "Felix?" Ivan asked.

         "Yes, Ivan?"

         "You don't know how nice it is to hear you say that."

         "Did we get it?"

         "Felix, my friend, we didn't just 'get' it, we destroyed it."

         "And the village?"

         "Both the Chimera Mage and our Psynergy attacks have taken down buildings," Picard said, looking around at the assembled villagers.

         "The people are all their separate single pieces, though," Ivan offered helpfully. "Even _if_ one of them was tossing sharp objects around," he added with a glance at Cura. 

         "Sharp objects?" Felix queried. Ivan touched his gashed shoulder, wincing and gasping sharply. Picard and Felix looked at one another, at al loss.

         "I am sorry, Ivan," Picard said, an apologetic look in his eyes. "I have no more Psynergy."

         "This is odd," Felix said, frowning. "I _should_ have Psynergy, at least a little of it, but I'm getting nothing."

         "That's alright," Ivan said with half a smile. He and Picard stood, together pulling Felix to his feet. "I'll manage. I'll just leave it up to _you_ to explain this to the villagers." Ivan yawned. "You know, it's getting harder and harder to figure out what time it is around here."

         "Well," said the Elder, who had come to stand behind the Adepts somewhere in all the mayhem. "For us it is time for the evening meal, but I suspect that the three of you are exhausted."

         "I agree," Ivan said. Without another word, he headed for Yueivar's version of an Inn. Picard, after a moment's pause, followed. 

         "Are you not going to go with them?" Cura asked Felix. He looked at her indecisively. 

         "Though I am tired, I'm not exhausted, and I _am _hungry. Besides, someone needs to explain all that's happened to your villagers. It might as well be me."

         "Are you certain?" the Elder asked.

         "Actually, I wouldn't mind finding out more about this…thing that's keeping the sun from your island. I mean…you mentioned a power of some kind?"

         "Come and have dinner with us," said the Elder, smiling amicably. "I am certain both the villagers and you yourself have many questions."

         "Thank you for your kind offer, but I may just follow Picard and Ivan after all," Felix said, with a very uncharacteristic change of mind. "Tomorrow…uh, morning…if you don't mind, show us where exactly we might find this creature. It may be that we can help you."

+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+

         Finally, with dark clouds obscuring the night sky and a calm sea lapping at the rocky shoreline, Jenna reached land.

         _I wonder what those odd blue and green flashes were earlier_, she thought. _I hope someone on this island can help me get back to the mainland, though_. _I don't even know where I am_. She did know, however, that there were lights in the distance—lights that proved human residence.

         "I suppose now is as good a time as any," she said, picking up her staff and beginning the long walk toward civilization.

+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+

Vil: That said, I'll leave you a magic arrow and let you do what you will. Any comments, questions, whatever, you can review with, and I'll do my best to answer without revealing the plot. Oh—almost forgot.

Disclaimer: The only things I owned in here were those mentioned before and the big monster thing.

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	5. Late Arrival

Sunlight and Shade

Disclaimer: I own what I own. Anything that you didn't find in your various GS and TLA games is mine. So there.

Chapter Five: Late Arrival

            As slowly as he could manage, Ivan woke up. He didn't want to, and moreover, he didn't feel like he should be awake. He recalled all too vividly the events of the day before, if you could even call it a day in a place where the sun never rose, and knew that the villagers would need a rather large explanation. In Sheba's absence, such a duty would fall to Isaac, but he wasn't present either, so the explaining became Ivan's job. 

            Opening his eyes with a sigh that expressed much more resignation than he'd intended, Ivan sat up and stretched, wincing in preparation for the stab of pain that would come in his shoulder. Except none came. Suddenly fully awake, Ivan lowered his arms and stared blankly at his shoulder for a full ten seconds before pulling down on the sleeve and staring for yet another ten seconds in silent disbelief.

            Nothing was there. Not a scratch, mark or even a scar. Ivan sat for a moment, puzzled. Certainly, it wasn't a dream—the fact that he remembered going to sleep in this bed testified to that. Not only that, but he could smell food cooking, and hunger quite easily became his dominant concern.

            Rising and putting on clean clothes (he hadn't been going to inquire about where the ones from last night had gone—he was now dressed much like any of the villagers), he hurried down the stairs. Picard sat at a small table near a window, the food before him barely touched, his eyes focused on the darkness above and yet not focused at all. 

            Grabbing a plate of his own, Ivan joined the Lemurian. Watching him for a minute or two, Ivan finally shrugged and began to eat. Picard eventually picked up on the fact that he had company, and with a distant smile began to eat as well.

            "Thanks," Ivan said, his thoughts catching up with him now that he wasn't so hungry. For some reason, great amounts of lost Psynergy had always left him ravenous. 

            "For?" Picard asked, raising a blue eyebrow inquisitively.

            "You mean…it wasn't you?"

            "I suppose not. Unless you mean that it is a thank you for yesterday. Still sorry about your shoulder, though. I think I've got plenty of Psynergy now—I could fix it."

            "No, no, it's…it's alright…it's gone, is what I mean by alright…but then…oh, must have been Felix…have you seen him, by the way?" Ivan asked, each of his thoughts clambering over, under, and around one another in an attempt to beat their companions out of his mouth. 

            Picard opened his mouth to speak, then closed it again and frowned. A familiar pensive look crossed his face for a moment, then he nodded quickly, as though to assure himself of some thought. 

            "Alright, if you say so Ivan, and no, I have not seen Felix. No doubt he is off completing some mutually beneficial endeavor."

            "Either that or still asleep," Ivan speculated with a hint of sarcasm. Of course, that theory was put to rest as Felix strode in, in fact almost swaggered, a confident look on his face. "What's gotten into you?"

            "We're going to fight this thing," Felix said determinedly, though he was smiling. It was an eerie sort of smile, a borderline evil smirk really, and Ivan wondered if perhaps Felix hadn't gone a bit mad and stayed up too late last night doing things that he wasn't usually known to do, things that involved amber-colored liquids and a handful of coins. But Ivan also thought Felix had much more sense than that. 

            "Today, you mean?" Picard asked, his mind obviously elsewhere yet again. Ivan and Felix frowned, looking at him. Momentarily both pondered what in the world could be taking up so much space in the Lemurian's mind, but neither Felix or Ivan chose to pursue that line of thinking, Felix because he couldn't find out anyway and Ivan because he _could_. 

            "Yes, today," Felix continued, an excited gleam in his eye. "I even have a map."

            "_A map_? _A_ MAP!" Ivan cried, standing up quickly and not even noticing the chair crash to the ground behind him. "Felix, have you gone crazy?! None of us have even half of our Psynergy back yet!"

            "Actually, I don't have any at all," Felix admitted, rather embarrassed. "But the longer we wait, the more these people have to suffer."

            "They'll suffer forever if we die fighting something big with less than a fully-charged Adept between us!"

            "Then we'll be all the better for it!" Felix cried, jumping up as well, angry now. "At least then Jenna won't be lonely!" Realizing what he'd said, Felix stopped, mouth agape, and sat down slowly. 

            "Wait," said Ivan, whose brain felt like it had tried to come to a screeching halt and take off at the speed of sound at the same time. "You're worried about Jenna, is that it? You think she's…you think she's dead?"

            "I'd like to think she wasn't…but she couldn't have lasted for long out on the ocean, and the three of us were brought here, so it stands to reason that she'd be here too unless…"

            "Felix." At the sound and intonation of that word, both Felix and Ivan looked away from one another and at the owner of the voice. It was Picard's voice, and his next words fell in the same odd tone. "While it is possible that Jenna is dead, it is not probable, and I have extreme doubts that your sister, the most hotheaded female Mars Adept, when angry, which no doubt she is, since the downfall of Karst, and possibly even before that, would let the ocean beat her at anything. If I know her well enough, and by now I probably do, she's survived. Simply because we do not know where she is does not mean she did not make it _somewhere_." 

            "Picard?" Ivan asked after a long silence.

            "Yes?"

            "Would it _kill_ you to use an apostrophe or two?"

            "I don't know. I haven't tried," Picard said, laughing to himself.

            "Well, when you put it that way…" Felix mumbled, trailing off. "We need to get our Psynergy back, then, and soon."

            "I'm probably at halfway by now," Ivan said, and Picard nodded in agreement. Felix frowned.

            "I still have nothing. It's bothering me…it feels like I didn't get enough sleep, only I know I did, but what I mean is a familiar part of my energy is missing and I haven't a clue as to where it went. And by the gods, Jenna's got the Psy Crystals. Someone tell me what day it is."

            "Thursday," Ivan offered.

            "The thirteenth," Picard added.

            "Thought so," Felix said with a resigned sigh. "_Now_ someone tell me where my Psynergy went."

            "Beats me," Ivan said with a shrug. "When did it go?"

            "I had some during the battle yesterday, and when I…when you…when…"

            "Sentences are usually best when they express complete thoughts," Picard mused. "If not, we would all be walking around saying things like, "good oranges…morning…people," and, "if, then…how…that is, he…" and, "when I…when you…when…" and the like."

            "When I 'woke up' after the battle yesterday, it was gone. Completely. Picard, did—"

            "Do not question me, Felix," Picard said, his voice not threatening but suggesting that it was still a good idea to do as he asked. "I had limited resources. Before you ask, yes, I did finish, and yes, I am one hundred percent sure of that."

            "Didn't know you could read minds," Ivan muttered.

            "I can't. That one was predictable."

            "That…that _thing's_ attack must have drained my Psynergy…somehow…but I can't think of a way to get it back fast enough, if none's come back even by morning. Or what passes for morning here," Felix added with a glance outside. "What do you know?" he asked in muted surprise. "It's raining."

            "Raining?" Picard asked, a bit more excited now.

            "Is it a thunderstorm?" Ivan was equally as anticipatory.

            "I don't know, I'm not out standing in it. But come on. Maybe the Elder knows how I can get my Psynergy back." Felix stood and walked to the door, holding it so Ivan and Picard could pass. None of them were wearing anything that would shelter them from the rain, and Ivan was dressed like he lived there, but neither of these facts seemed to bother them. Picard didn't mind rain, as long as it wasn't interfering with something more important he was doing, and the occasional flashes of lightning were enough to keep the rain itself off Ivan's mind.

            Felix would have definitely preferred sun at that point, but didn't mind rain normally. In fact, the three of them were walking rather slowly towards the Elder's house.

            "Did it occur to you that maybe, before we came, the Elder didn't know what Psynergy even _was_?" Ivan asked Felix.

            "Yep."

            "No branching thoughts from that, huh?"

            "None whatsoever. If she doesn't know, I doubt anyone will. Anyone on this island, anyway."

            "You have a point." By this time, they had reached the house, and Picard knocked on the door. Almost instantly it opened, and a familiar smiling face greeted them. 

            "Good morning, heroes of the village," Cura said, a humorous tone in her voice. "Come to join us for breakfast?"

            "We've had that, actually," Felix said. "I was hoping I'd be able to speak to the Elder, if she has a minute."

            "She has all the time in the world for the people who saved Yueivar," Cura responded in a serious tone. She opened the door wider and the three Adepts walked in. The Elder emerged from a back room and greeted them warmly, inviting them to sit down. Felix refused, and briefly explained the current problem. After a moment's pause, the Elder nodded, leading the Adepts into the room she had come out of.

            "Back here," she said, "is something I found some seasons ago while walking down to the shoreline. I believe it may help you." She lifted a large purple stone, glittering and glimmering from the inside, and handed it to Felix. He took it, fairly certain of what it was, and was relieved when the stone flashed brightly for a few moments, then vanished, leaving he, Ivan and Picard with fully recharged Psynergy. 

            "Do you three still plan to challenge the monster today?" the Elder asked. They looked at each other. Picard and Ivan nodded, then looked at Felix. He was, in effect, their leader, after all. It was his decision.

            "I guess so," Felix said after a while. "It can't be as bad as what we've faced before. And nothing will ever be as terrible as Air's Rock, anyway."

            "Oh ha ha Felix," Ivan muttered. 

            "I do enjoy a good joke, yes."

            "Have I ever told you the one about the Mars Adepts?" Picard asked on their way out the door. The rain was slowing, and Felix already had the map open, squinting in the near-darkness. However, at these words he looked back over his shoulder at Picard, and Ivan did the same.

            "Yes. You have. Please, not again," Ivan said finally. Picard shrugged. "Rain must be getting to him," Ivan muttered. There wasn't enough light to read by except for the flashes of moments when lightning shot across the clouds, and in that short time Ivan had seen no trace of anything telling them which direction on this map was forward.

            Seeing an unlit lantern hanging on a nearby post, Ivan supposed it couldn't hurt, and grabbed it as they walked by, lighting it with a tiny spark. Holding it above the map, thankful that the rain had stopped, Ivan squinted at the layout of the island.

            "Where are we, Picard?" he asked absently.

            "Standing in front of a lot of trees," the Lemurian replied.

            "No, no, I mean which way are we facing?"

            "I cannot tell you without a sun to go by."

            "Rats. You're right. A lot of trees, huh? There're two spots like that." 

"One of them we came through the other night."

            "This isn't it," Felix said with certainty. "I would remember. So are we going the right way, then?"

            "Unfortunately, yes," Ivan said grimly. He knew that none of them were looking forward to this. They didn't even know what they were walking into, though he alone of the three had actually, or so he had been told, been in the presence of this sun-stealing monster before. If he did remember anything, he speculated, his mind would have already made its best attempt to forget.

            "Let's be off, then," Felix said, and the three of them nodded, heading into the dense forest with thoughts that would have preferred to remain unthought about what lay ahead. 

+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+

            Three hours passed, and the dense cloud cover lightened to steel-grey, which seemed quite bright to the villagers. The attitude in Yueivar was a tense one, for everyone knew the three boys who had just arrived had gone to try to rid the island of the monster for good. So Cura and her brothers were not expecting at all what happened as they drew water from the well that day.

            A figure, cloaked against long-gone rain, hood up, walking very slowly and leaning on a staff, emerged from the trees and half-stumbled, half-ran down the gentle slope to the village. The figure ended up at the well, collapsing against the stone and breathing hard. Cura stepped back, startled, as the figure rose again, turned to her, and spoke in a very female voice.

            "Might I have…some of…your water?"

            "Of-of-of course, of course you can," Cura said, stammering in surprise. The girl pulled down her hood, revealing long reddish-brown hair tied back in a ponytail and eyes of the same hue. Handing her a small wooden bowl filled with water, Cura looked at her curiously.

            "Thanks," the girl said, drinking every last drop of the water in one gulp. "Sorry. Can't drink the seawater, it's salty."

            "That's alright. You…you came by boat?"

            "Would have, if the boat was still in one piece. We wrecked in a storm."

            "How did you…wait, I'm being silly. Come on, you have to sit down somewhere, at least." Cura privately chided herself for not thinking straight. Nodding slowly, the girl followed her and her brothers to the Elder's house, where the girl was given a chair before the fire and a drink. 

            "How did you get here?" Cura began again. 

            "Raft," answered the girl. "Paddled with this," she added, indicating her staff.

            "Who are you, might be a good question," the Elder said.

            "My name is Jenna," she said quietly. 

            "Jenna? But…there was a boy, one of the ones who went off…you're Felix's sister?" Cura asked anxiously. She seriously doubted that Jenna would like the idea of her brother going to face something dangerous.

            "Yes. Why? Did he come here?" Jenna asked urgently. Quickly, the Elder explained to her the events of the past couple of days. Jenna sighed. "I have to go after them."

            "You can't, though. You're exhausted." Before Cura could continue with the list, Jenna whispered something, and there was a brief red flash. With a smile, Jenna stood, grabbed her staff, and headed for the door.

            "You don't know the way!" the Elder protested.

            "Would you tell me?" Jenna asked, pausing with her hand on the doorknob. The Elder sighed resignedly.

            "Yes. I will."

            Moments later, with a determined look on her face, Jenna stood at the edge of a large stand of trees. Holding a lantern in one hand, she raised it to shoulder level and placed her other hand behind it.

            "Blaze!" she cried, and the fire sprang up and surges forward, much larger than it had been before, burning a straight path through the trees and undergrowth. "Four Mars Adepts my left foot," she muttered, dropping the melted remains of the lantern as she headed down the path she had created at a full run, her way lit by the remnants of flames still burning occasionally on the remains of trees or bushes.

 +_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+

            Ivan, Felix and Picard stood before a large opening in a cliff face. "I guess it goes down to the shoreline, at some point," Ivan said, "if that's how I got here."

            "Supposedly some sort of…creature brought you to that cave, and then another one took you from there to the village. By water or not, I don't know," Felix added. "But we might as well go on inside."

            "You really think we're powerful enough for this?"  
            "We will have to be," Picard said. "Or I know a Mercury Adept who will hunt us down and kill us for dying."

            "You'd be talking about Mia, then?"

            "That I would."

            "She scares you?"

            "Yes. Very much so."

            "Me too."

            "Both of you are stalling," Felix remarked. Picard and Ivan looked at him.

            "Of course we are," Ivan said, as though it was the most natural thing to be doing in the world. "But we must sound idiotic. Come on then…let's go in."

            Taking one last look at the dark world around them, the three Adepts headed into the mouth of the cavern. Felix paused for a moment, and wondered if he didn't hear a sound, far off in the direction they'd come…but no, he must have been imagining things.

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Vil: Hope you liked it. The next chapter is the very climactic part where they…oh, I'm not going to spoil it for you, silly! 

Norli: Sad. Isaac's not in it. Very sad.

Kaede: It's still good though.

Avaria: Yep. IVAN! IVANIVANIVAN! Don't kill him, Vil.

Vil: Can't tell you what I'll do. But only Norli knows my ending, and she also knows what happens if she tells. *Evil cackle*

Norli: Does she ever scare you guys?  
*Kaede and Ava nod*

Norli: Good. At least I'm not alone.

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	6. Darkness Personified

Sunlight and Shade

A/N: The largest chapter yet, I think, and by far the best. It will be, I promise. Spectacular. Get ready—we've got hours to go.

**Griffinkhan:** It does resemble Izumo, I'll say that. I wrote this before I'd ever heard of Izumo, though, so I can tell you I didn't copy them. Maybe I'll tell you why Ivan came, maybe I won't. You'll have to read to see, though, right? :)

**Midnight C:** I know, isn't Air's Rock a nightmare? It drove me more insane than usual trying to get through it! GRR! You're gonna love this chapter!

Ok, so it was just the two of you for chapter five. Wow. That's depressing. Alright…here we go!

Chapter Six: Darkness Personified 

            After a few turns, it became apparent that what little light there was outside was not going to follow them very far into the cave. In fact, it was dark enough now that Felix almost walked into the wall at the next turn. Ivan had had the lantern for a while, but a stray draft had blown it out, sending them into complete darkness.

            "It sure is dark."

            "Yep."

            "I agree."

            Every so often, this same conversation would arise. Each time the echoes were louder and the Adepts felt more and more awkward breaking the silence. Finally Ivan could stand it no longer.

            "Do you know what we need?" he asked.

            "No. What?"

            "Some dramatic adventuring music." There was a sound that vaguely reminded him of someone rummaging through things in a pack. "Picard?"

            "Yes?"

            "That wasn't a signal for you to start playing music."

            "I know that. I was not about to begin. I do not wish to draw attention to ourselves."

            "Felix?"

            "Ivan."

            "Was that _you_, then?"

            "No."

            "Oh boy." Ivan paused. The others, not noticing him, kept on walking, until they heard Ivan whisper, "Stop."

            "What?" Felix asked, half-turning and remembering he couldn't see Ivan anyway. "Why?"

            "Because the last thing I said echoed far too much. We're in a larger room now. And I think I can make out your silhouettes. It's getting light again."

            "As light as it may ever get when the sun does not rise," Picard said, a note of sadness in his voice.

            "Light all the same. And rocks that large are scary enough, but I don't think it's even a rock."

            "What are you talking about?"

            "Behind you, Picard." Curious, the Lemurian turned around. He immediately took a step back. There was indeed something large and vaguely resembling a rock nearby, but he was close enough to realize it was warm. And _alive_.

            "This might be it, then," Felix whispered. "We're in luck. I think it's asleep."

            "Won't be for long, if we start attacking it."

            "I am still curious as to how something like this can keep the sun from rising," Picard said softly.

            "It doesn't, though. I think it's like the serpent the other day, when the ship wrecked. It doesn't take anything away—it just brings the dark clouds with it."

            "That brings me to another point," Picard continued. "Do either of you know how long we've been walking?"

            "Not really," Felix said. "About five hours to reach the entrance, and another three after that, maybe."

            "We're well into the afternoon, then," Ivan said. "I wonder how long it would take to fight this thing."

            "That depends on how powerful it is. And what it can do."

            "I think there is an opening behind it that leads to the beach," Picard said, walking around the monster as silently as a shadow. A moment later, his voice floated back to them. "Yes. It is open to the night. Of course…it may still be day. I cannot tell."

            "That's alright, Picard. As long as this thing keeps sleeping," Ivan said. 

            "Cowardly this evening, aren't we?" Felix asked with a sly grin that went unseen.

            "I can't imagine that you _want_ to get beaten up by something that takes darkness with it wherever it goes. Wait a second…you're not trying to die a valiant death as a hero, are you?" Felix hesitated to answer Ivan's query. "I thought so. I thought we agreed a long time ago that accepting death during battle was against the rules?"

            "I distinctly remember that, as well," Picard put in. Felix sighed.

            "Shall we just attack it, then, and hope for the best?" he asked sharply. Ivan shrugged, then remembered that it was still very dark, and added that he didn't know.

            "Let's prepare ourselves, at least," Picard said. "You know, put a few Djinn on standby so we can summon fast. It took us about eight hours to get here, you know, and we would not want to waste the opportunity."

            "Whose idea was the Djinn-crazy strategy, again?" Ivan asked as he did so.

            "Sheba's, I thought," said Felix.

            "Yes. So did I."

+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+

            "Have they gone in here, then?" Jenna asked aloud.

            "Don't know," replied a voice. Jenna would have jumped if she hadn't almost instantly recognized the voice of Tinder, one of her Djinn. That particular voice was one she usually appreciated. Every Djinni was quite a deal older than any of the Adepts, even Picard, but Tinder stood out as one of the eldest and easily one of the most helpful. Considering the options, anyway. For example, when Cannon chose to voice an opinion, it usually centered on destruction.

            "The Elder told me this was where they would be," Jenna said uncertainly. "I've been walking for a while, though. I mean…it could be…over by now."

            "Jenna."

            "Yes?"

            "Are you stalling?"

            "No! I'm trying to make a plan. I mean…there's something in there that might've…"

            "What do you suppose Spark and I are for?" 

            "Neither of you will work if they're dead," Jenna said bluntly. 

            "Go on. You know better than to think that they'd just up and die. You'd kill them for it, and they know it."

            "You do have a point. Besides, I owe Picard for telling that darn joke." Anger flared in Jenna's eyes. She had not spent a day and then some out at sea alone, paddling for her life, only to come this far and be beaten by something she hadn't even seen yet. "Do you remember when I said someone would pay?"

            "Vividly."

            "It's about to."

            "Oh good!" Cannon said, appearing in the air above Jenna's head. "Battle!"

            "Get back here, you demented, battle-crazed lunatic," said a testy voice. Jenna laughed. Fury, appropriately named, flashed into visibility near Cannon. "You're a nuisance, you know that?"

            "Yeah, yeah, get over it. At least I'm not angry all the time."

            "No, you just always have to be wrecking something," said Spark, also appearing. At this point Jenna gave up on arbitration and took a seat on a nearby rock, Tinder still perched on her shoulder. One by one, the remainder of her nine Djinn appeared, all of them rambling on about something she didn't even want to guess at.

            "Both of you stop it! That's childish!" scorned Shine. 

            "Most definitely," Core agreed. "They're acting like bickering humans."

            "Jenna heard that, you know," said Char.

            "Core doesn't care," Cannon pointed out. "Now come on! I want to blast something!"

            "Shut up, you deranged maniac," muttered Fury.

            "What was that?" Reflux snapped, giving Fury the Mars-Djinni equivalent of an angry glare. 

            "You heard me."

            "You wanna say that to my face, windbag?"

            "_All right, that's it_!!" yelled two commanding, equally annoyed voices. All the Djinn turned in midair to regard Jenna, eyes flaring, and Tinder, glowing a furious orange. 

            "This has gone far enough," Jenna said in measured tones that weren't quite controlled. "We are going in there _without_ any more arguments, in fact without a word from any of you unless I ask for it. Kindle, Char, Reflux, Core, you put yourselves on standby. Shine, stick around for a while—it looks dark in there."

            "Yes ma'am!" replied five voices in almost perfect chorus. 

            "The rest of you go. Before I lose my temper." Instantly, every Djinni except Shine vanished. "I do like it when they listen. Those occasions are too rare. Come on, Shine. I need a light and I don't know if I can afford to use Psynergy on one of my own."

            Shine perched herself atop Jenna's head and, as quietly and quickly as possible, they entered the same cave that Felix, Ivan and Picard had entered hours ago.

+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+

            "Are we ready?" Felix asked. Ivan and Picard nodded.

            There was a long, silent pause.

            "Well? Are we?" Felix demanded. Ivan and Picard looked at each other sheepishly.

            "Yes," they answered together.

            "We nodded," Ivan added, "but it's…you know…dark."

            "Yes, right. Straight-element summons, on three. We should have an advantage if we attack first." Felix raised a hand in preparation. "One."

            The rush of power that came with a powerful summons flooded all three of the Adepts, and it was with an adrenaline-high-induced grin that Felix continued.

            "Two."

            Light gathered in Ivan's hand, and Picard's soon after. It illuminated two determined, anticipatory faces. The moment Felix's hand was lit with a soft green, he gave the final word.

            "Three." 

            "I summon Thor!"

            "I summon Boreas!"  
            "I summon Judgment!" The three summons, one each of Jupiter, Mercury and Venus, descended upon the sleeping creature. Of course, Thor was the quickest, and the monster woke up equally as quickly. Its eyes seemed to give off a glow like that of a raging fire, and the cavern was lit nearly as bright as a sunny day. Felix watched with growing puzzlement as the second summon, Boreas, was deflected by some sort of barrier. Judgment got through, however, though it didn't seem to even cause the creature to flinch.

            "They barely scratched it!" Ivan exclaimed. He was angry now. In the reddish light he could see four claw-tipped feet and two curving horns. Some corner of his mind desperately wanted to run. He told that corner to shut up.

            Picard, on the other side of the beast, could see what the others could not, and he wasn't liking it much either. The monster had a long tail, the end of which was tipped by a razor-sharp scythe-like blade about as long as one of his arms. For what felt like the hundredth time he wished he could get his thoughts across to Ivan without Ivan having to speak in his mind first.

            _Felix? What now?_ Ivan asked in Felix's mind. 

            _What? I don't know! Throw some Djinn at it, see what it does. We have to find its weakness._ Upon hearing this, Ivan relayed the message to Picard. The Lemurian almost gave thanks on his knees for the chance to tell Ivan about the tail, but the Jupiter Adept had broken contact almost instantly. Picard cursed in Lemurian under his breath.

            "Echo! Steel!" Felix called, and two Djinn spirits sped out from him, one of them smashing into the monster twice with a hard double strike, and the other hitting only once with a sound like something wet. However, this succeeded in doing little more than turning the beast's furious, crimson gaze on Felix. It lashed out with one clawed foot and Felix jumped backwards, awkwardly off-balance, and barely missed being disemboweled by the creature. As it was, he was only scratched.

            "Squall! Gust!" Ivan's attacks did a bit more than Felix's, but not much. This thing was either very strong or had no elemental weakness. A clawed foot reached for Ivan too, but he was too fast and easily dodged out of the way. He wasn't fast enough, however, for the whip-like, bladed tail. It launched itself, slicing in a downward motion that sent the razor-fine edge along Ivan's forehead and down his arm. He fell back, narrowly missing being sliced in half by the second swing upwards.

            Picard, seeing this, tried a different approach. "Shade!" Three individual glowing blue barriers instantly surrounded the three Adepts—how long they would hold, he didn't know. That tail began smashing into his, and Picard decided he really didn't like where this was going. "Serac!" Knowing it wouldn't work like it usually did, Picard hoped that Serac's usual one-hit kill attack, which he didn't use much, would at least do something. It would have, had it not been stopped by the same kind of barrier that had stopped Boreas. 

            "What's that about?" asked Felix. "Our Djinn got through."

            "I know. Maybe it has an elemental weakness to Mercury?" Picard frowned. The scythe tail was still banging away, and neither Picard nor Felix could get to Ivan from where they were. _This is starting to look bad_, Picard thought.

            "I couldn't tell you. Resistance to Venus, though. Come on, let's whack it with some Psynergy. Ivan, you first." Felix looked to the Jupiter Adept, or rather, to where he should have been standing, to find him sitting on the ground, one hand against his forehead and the other on the arm belonging to the first hand. "Ivan?"

            "…Felix." That one word was said slow enough and with enough of a lack of energy to make the Venus Adept in question truly frightened. Ivan did everything fast and very energetically. This was…so backwards. 

            "Oh, not good," Picard muttered. Felix, struck for a flash of a second by an odd sense of déjà vu, shook it off and turned to the monster. He then immediately found a problem. With two Djinn on standby and two still recovering, there weren't enough to cast his most powerful Psynergy. He would have to settle for it's less powerful form.

            "Ragnarok!" A sword made of pure Venus Psynergy sliced into the monster, exploding outwards with considerable force before disappearing. This only appeared to make it angrier, and it now lowered its head and began to run at Felix. "Picard! Go!" 

            Picard nodded, using the time to reach Ivan. Stepping through the barrier, he knelt beside the Jupiter Adept and spoke quietly.

            "Ivan, you have to move your hands."

            "Al…right…" Ivan said quietly, lowering both hands slowly. Picard saw the gashes from the scythe swipe and bit his lip. If this went on, he'd be out of Psynergy before he ever got the chance to attack.

            "Pure Ply," he said, and for a few moments the glow inside Shade's barrier brightened, and then dimmed again. "You alright, Ivan?"

            "How long can Shade last?" Ivan asked, slowly standing.

            "I do not know," Picard answered truthfully. Really, he thought Shade was putting up with it quite well already. In the usual lack of luck the Adepts had in these situations, the barrier flickered away and then vanished.

            "Wonderful," Felix muttered. Unprotected, regretting the decision not to bring Granite along instead of Iron, he drew his sword and ran forward. 

            "I thought we decided on _not_ dying for the cause," Ivan muttered. Picard, despite the situation, smiled. 

            "I think Felix can handle it. Besides…this is a good chance. Diamond Berg!" A large chunk of ice materialized and rammed itself into the monster, becoming liquid for an instant and then freezing the thing in place. Picard leapt upon it, sword flashing as he moved faster than even Ivan's eye could follow.

            "Still the best," Ivan said with a slight nod. Raising a hand, he pointed it at the thawing creature. "Spark Plasma!" Being struck by a lightning barrage must not have been in the beast's plans either, because it seemed taken quite by surprise. For a fleeting moment, Ivan thought they had gained the upper hand.

            That moment was _very_ fleeting, however, as a familiar sort of mystical glow, only in tones of deep crimson and bright fiery red, filled the cavern. 

            "I really don't like this," Felix said, recognizing the glow for what it was. The monster had some sort of restorative Psynergy! 

            "Same here," Ivan said. "It's just going to keep on healing itself."

            "You had to say that, did you?" Picard asked, looking rather pale.

            "Well…wait. Why?"

            "You are giving it ideas," Picard said bluntly. "Do not do that again." 

            "Right."

            Felix was about to speak when the monster opened its mouth and let out a roar. Recalling this particular type of Psynergy casting from the day before, Felix knew he wasn't about to enjoy himself. But what came next was aimed solely at Picard.

            Flying from somewhere the Adepts didn't want to consider was a barrage of something small and glistening in the light. Glinting red. And sharp.

            Picard saw these missiles and dodged them as best he could. A few, however, became lodged in his leg, and he fell to one knee at the sudden onslaught of pain, burning like pure Mars fire itself. The Psynergy he had been about to throw at the creature went wild, striking the cavern ceiling and sending several rocks careening toward him. The pain in his leg faded from his mind as the stones slammed into his back like sledgehammers, forcing him even closer to the ground than he already was. But he did not collapse—to do so would have likely been fatal.

            Eventually the barrage of rocks stopped, and the fire in his leg flared again, worse this time than it had been at first. He felt strange, almost as though the world around him was slowing down, as Felix and Ivan, not noticing what had happened to him, as they were busy deflecting the scythe tail with their weapons, cast various powerful Psynergies. Even the triple swords of Odyssey seemed to be moving as though through thick mud. Dimly he realized that whatever had hit him had contained poison.

            There was little he could do about it now, he decided, or at least the majority of him did. A small corner of his mind had the presence to look down, to reach out a hand and with a gasp, pull several needlelike objects from the back of his leg, drop them, and with the same hand call upon the only Psynergy he could think of that would do any good. 

            "Cure Poison," he whispered, but already the darkness was taking him. He fought it, fought to stay awake, or conscious at least, but eventually he collapsed on the stone floor of the cavern.

+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+

            Jenna was getting closer, she could tell. There were sounds up ahead, and the slightest hint of a red-tinted light that offset Shine's brilliant yellow. Dimly, she realized that it must be very late at night now, about ten hours after noon. At home in Vale, it would be dark. Here, it was dark _at_ noon, so there wasn't much to go by. Or so the Elder said, anyway.

            "Shine, can you make out what they're saying?" she asked quietly. 

            "No. They aren't saying much, but there was that loud crash about an hour ago." Shine's words stayed with Jenna when, about five minutes later, Jenna came to the end of the tunnel. Or so it would seem. But the battle sounds beyond the pile of rocks blocking the way told her otherwise.

            "Can you blow it apart?" Shine asked.

            "I can try." Taking a step back, Jenna aimed her hand at the rock pile. "Burst!" Fragments of rocks flew in all directions, but more came down from above, and larger ones, further blocking her path. 

            "Let's not try again," Shine suggested.

+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+

            Had she known it, Jenna had just aided Felix and Ivan a great deal. The latter was currently blasting the monster with everything he could come up with, including some Crystal Powder he'd found in a pocket. He even drew on Felix's Psynergy and summoned Judgment again. But no matter what he did, the beast would retaliate with either a rain of poisonous needle spray or the glow of restoring power.

            Ivan, exhausted and out of Psynergy, fell to his knees. Felix looked from where he was with Picard over to him and cried out. The scythe tail was coming again, and Ivan was too beaten and battered already to be able to dodge out of the way.

            From inside the cavern, it seemed like an explosion. Rocks flew, and a particularly large one struck the creature full on in the head. Yet another knocked aside the scythe blade of the tail, so it got stuck in the ground beside Ivan. With a swift leap, Felix raised his sword and swung downward. The monster roared in outrage at its prime weapon being severed, and Felix grinned triumphantly.

            "How goes it?" Ivan gasped.

            "No luck," Felix said. "Even Potent Cure isn't working, and he isn't dead, so I can't try Revive. And only Jenna has any reviving Djinn…only Jenna…only…" A strange look came over Felix's face then. It was the look that accompanied the slow yet sudden realization of something that had happened coinciding with something else from the past.

            "Burst Psynergy," Ivan and Felix said together.

            "Ether!" Ivan called, and he felt his Psynergy return. "We can't help Picard. But we can start taking this thing down."

            "How?"

            "Easy. It's only still standing because it has restorative Psynergy, or something like it."

            "Yes," Felix said, prompting Ivan to continue.

            "So we block the Psynergy. Luff!" The Jupiter Djinni shot forward, wrapping the monster in a deep purple glow. The symbol of a Psyphon Seal, the seal that kept Psynergy from being usable, hovered in the air above it.

            "Let's take it down," Felix said with a grin. 

            At about that time, Jenna climbed through a small hole in the rock and saw this scene. Her first instinct was to tackle Felix and either yell at him or hug him to death, but she decided not to do that. Instead, she ran forward, stopped just short of a large rock on the ground, and raised a hand.

            "I summon Meteor!" she yelled. Fiery stones rained on the monster, who finally seemed to be showing some weakness to something.

            "Jenna!" Felix cried happily. 

            "Hey bro. How do you get yourself into these things?"

            "My dumb luck, I suppose. Listen, can you help Picard? He was hit with some poison…barb things. I think the only thing that would work would be one of your Djinn."

            "Um…sure, Felix," Jenna said, frowning. It wasn't like Felix to miss out on the description of an attack. Still, she ignored that for the moment, hurrying, with a momentary sudden stop to avoid swiping claws, to where Picard lay still, on the ground.

            "Tinder," Jenna whispered. 

            "Yes?" asked that familiar voice. Tinder was once again perched on Jenna's shoulder. "Oh. You want me unleashed, then?"

            "Yes."

            "Alright." Tinder rose into the air and faded into multicolored feathery lights. These descended around Picard, and for a moment outshone the red glow from the monster's eyes. They faded, and Jenna felt Tinder now standing by. 

            "Jenna! The Psyphon's wearing off!" Ivan called. Without another thought Jenna stood and ran, stopping beside Ivan and raising her staff high.

            "Every Psynergy you can think of," Felix whispered. The beast opened its mouth again, releasing more poison barbs.

            "Odyssey!"

            "Spark Plasma!"

            "Cannon!" Jenna knew the Djinni would be happy to be able to finally thrash something. However, the poison barbs broke through still, several of them stinging her in the shoulder. She stumbled back, good hand yanking the darts free, trying to stop the feeling of pure fire. Her vision began to blur as the world started to move in slow motion.

            She heard a voice behind her, and her vision cleared itself. Motion sped back up to its normal speed. She turned around to find Picard behind her.

            "I owed you," he said simply. He was now the only one of them unscathed by battle. Together he and Jenna joined Ivan and Felix again. For hours, the four of them unleashed every attack they could think of on the beast.

            Finally, nearing six in the morning, it ran out of the Psynergy to heal itself. It was barely standing now, but the Adepts were likewise. 

            "Once…more," Felix said, voice raspy from calling out Psynergies all night. The others nodded tiredly. 

            Ivan prepared to call on Storm Ray, the strongest thing he had enough Psynergy left for. A single bolt came before he fell on the spot, exhausted, battered and beaten.

            Felix unleashed Meld, and together he and Jenna swung their weapons, each one taking out one of the beast's red eyes. The cavern was suddenly dark again, and Picard could not see when the worn out bodies of brother and sister hit the ground.

            Raising a hand, Picard said, "Diamond Dust," in a whisper. He nearly collapsed as well, but knew he had to stay standing, had to see if it was enough.

            It was enough.

            There was a sudden silence, and then a violent explosion as the beast's body was destroyed. Picard was thrown with it, unable to resist, and he found himself on the beach, the water about three feet away, the tide receding.

            Before unconsciousness overtook him, Picard smiled. Coming over the ocean, for the first time in what felt like years, was the beautiful golden edge of the sun. For a moment it seemed that all time stopped, as the first light of the sun in so long reached Sinelsol Island, and reflected off of the shining, content eyes of one Lemurian Mercury Adept.

            Picard blinked once, savoring the moment. Then he knew no more.

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Vil: Wow. Just…wow. I have never…I think I even went one better than the dragon battle here. Wow. I surprised myself. I hope you all liked it. There's a chapter yet to come, so be ready. I know you want to review this…please?

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	7. Golden Sun

Sunlight and Shade

A/N: At long last, we reach the end of the story. Or is it just another beginning??

**Midnight:** You're jealous? Of me? *blushes* Is Picard alright, I wonder? You'll have to read for that one. And go check my other updates, you!

**Village Idiot:** thank you for your compliments. Now drag Triad over to read it too.

**Alex:** You just watch me.

**Griffinkhan:** We all have certain scenes and story bits that we're not good at. Pity that my stories somehow always end up including my weakest one.

**Jupiter Girl:** Everyone's saying "wow". I like that. Keep on saying wow!

Alright, alright. On to the reading. Prepare to be surprised.

Chapter Seven: Golden Sun

            There were voices. Not many, in fact only two. And they were speaking quietly, as if someone nearby was asleep and they did not want to wake this person. They were also getting closer, it seemed, or at least getting slightly louder. 

            "How is he?" asked one of the voices.

            "As good as can be expected, I should think," said the second voice, sounding both older and younger at the same time. "Took quite a beating from that…" There was a pause as though this voice didn't know quite what to call this thing.

            "Tartarian isn't an enemy to be taken lightly," said the first voice. "Quite truthfully, I am amazed that these four survived. Amazed, also, that the girl caught up to the others. Three arrived, and yet four will return."

            The second voice mumbled something beyond hearing, though the owner of the first voice obviously could hear it. "Only three?" it asked, in surprised tones. "There are four here. We found two on the beach, this one and that one, and those two in a pile of rubble. Apparently there was quite an explosion."

            "Yes, but he…"

            He could hear all this. He knew he could. The voices were even familiar, to an extent. He couldn't place faces or names with them, but then he couldn't seem to come awake enough to do anything but listen. 

            "Three days, and still nothing," the second voice was saying. "He doesn't stand a chance." The voice sighed. "We need a miracle."

            "We've already had one," said the first voice. "I see no reason not to have another."

+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+

            Jenna sat atop the only cliff in Yueivar, looking out over what she could see of Sinelsol Island. The sun was high, for it was noon, and Jenna still didn't entirely believe that the sun had ever stopped rising. _One thing's for sure_, she thought, wiping a hand across her forehead, _it sure is hotter without the clouds_.

            "Warm, isn't it?" asked a voice behind her. Jenna looked behind her and quickly stood. "No need to stand," Cura said, and as Jenna sat back down, Cura sat beside her. "How are you, Jenna?"

            "I'm alright. It _is_ warm here, though. I suppose it should be, this being summer."

            "You know that's not what I meant when I asked."

            "I'm sorry," Jenna said, looking at the ground. "I did know. But…it just sounded too much like the way he would ask, you know? I'm used to it meaning two things and just…choosing which. It'd annoy him, sometimes, but we always laughed at it. It kept us sane, when we were on that boat for days at a time."

            "It's a wonder you stayed sane, indeed, if you traveled with Ivan," Cura said with a small smile.

            "Thankfully no," Jenna said fervently. "We had another Jupiter Adept with us, a girl named Sheba. She was…calmer than Ivan. And less perpetually high."

            "So answer my question."

            "The answer's the same. Once I got my Psynergy back, earlier this morning, I just got rid of everything. Everything that was left, that is. You aren't so bad at it yourself."

            "Not good enough, though," Cura said, this time looking down dejectedly herself. "You'd think, for being one of the only Adepts on this Island, not counting the four…er…not counting you guys, that I'd at least have gotten the hang of it by now."

            "Sometimes you sound like a normal kid," Jenna said quietly. "Less like the adult you're treated as, I mean. Everyone here respects everything you say and do. That's a lot of respect for a kid not even my age yet. They understand if you're not perfect. None of them are, either, and I don't see _them_ going around and saving the lives of strangers who just washed ashore one day."

            "Only two of them washed. Ivan was carried, and you brought yourself. Picard and Felix…" Cura had to stop. It was too hard to go on with that sentence. Already, that day she'd gone to the beach with her brothers seemed like years ago.

            "The sun really stopped rising?" Jenna asked in a desperate attempt to divert the subject. She didn't want to dwell on it either.

            "Oh yes. In fact the day you came was the lightest one yet…I wonder if it was some ironic joke, our lightest day being the one when darkness was defeated. That reminds me. By the time you got to this village, you were half…you were exhausted. But when you left, it was as though you'd just woken up. How?"  
            "I used my Psynergy. Some variant on Aura, I guess. Some of it still hasn't come back all the way," she added, reflexively rubbing her head. "I guess there was some kind of explosion?"

            "It looked like that, when we got there," Cura confirmed. "Everything was all strewn about, rocks and trees and things. And you. You and Ivan were in what was left of the cave, and Picard and your brother…" She stopped again, and swallowed hard. "We…they were on the beach. When we found Picard…he was facing the rising sun, and he was smiling."

            "He saw it, then," Jenna said quietly. "The trip back won't be the same…" 

            "Either of you hungry?" asked a voice. Both girls stood and turned to find Ivan standing there. "There's lunch down at the Inn, if you want it," he added. Jenna and Cura nodded, and Jenna smirked. _This girl and I are of like mind_, she thought.

            The two of them followed Ivan down the gently sloping side of the cliff, and Jenna was the first to notice something. "Ivan, you're not limping anymore."

            "Not my fault," Ivan said, seeming surprised at the revelation himself. "I don't have the Psynergy for it. It's been six days since we fought that thing, and I don't have the Psynergy for anything stronger than Whirlwind. Not that I could…am I babbling?"

            "Yes," Cura said, turning to Jenna with a look that said, 'is he always like this?' Jenna nodded solemnly.

            "So, basically, I didn't fix it. Care to tell me which of you did? And I'll assume that the shoulder thing was your fix, Cura. Felix was out of Psynergy and Picard come out and said he hadn't done it." Ivan's words seemed to echo off the cliff until they were deafening, but really did nothing of the kind. "Oh. Sorry, Jenna."

            "That's alright. And I suspect it was my doing. I used Cool Aura earlier and—"

            "That's it!" Cura said suddenly, a sudden cheer in her voice. "That's it, Jenna!"

            "Whoa, wait, hold on," Jenna said, mentally adding, _Shut up, Ivan_, at his laughter at her 'usual line.' "What's it?"

            "Correct me if I'm wrong. Aura Psynergies affect all Adepts in your range when you use it, yes?"

            "Assuming they're…alive," Jenna said slowly, as what Cura was thinking began to dawn on her as well. "Is it important?" she asked innocently, aware of Ivan's ignorance on the idea.

            "It might just be. Come on!" Cura broke into a run, and Ivan followed close behind with a call to Zephyr, grabbing Jenna's shirt so that she'd be pulled along as well. 

            "Ivan!" Jenna yelped, knowing that any more than one word per sentence would be unintelligible due to the rapid speech that accompanied Zephyr's speed boost. "Stop!"

            "Whatwhy?" Ivan asked, but stopped nonetheless. They waited a few moments for Cura to catch up, for they had passed her, and her expression was somewhere halfway between relief and a glare when she stopped to catch her breath.

            "Remind me never to race you," she said with a grin. Walking now, but walking quickly, the three of them reached the Elder's house, where Picard and Felix currently were.

            "Likely Picard has less Psynergy than you do, Ivan. He's been…busy." Cura opened the door quietly, pulling off her shoes as the other Adepts did likewise. They followed her up the stairs, silent as shadows, and she softly knocked on a closed door.

            The reply was a tired-sounding, "Come in," and Cura opened the door. She didn't need to tell them that Felix barely stood a chance. They already knew. 

            The first thing Jenna saw was Picard standing by the window, leaning casually against the wall and staring at the blue sky with an ecstatic grin. The second thing she saw scared her. The bed where Felix had been stood empty, and neatly made, too.

            The third thing nearly gave her a heart attack. Felix, looking no worse than he had back on the ship where everything started, was standing on the other side of the room, smiling with more real emotion than the Adepts had seen him display since Gaia Rock. Jenna, tears falling in happiness, ran to her brother and hugged him as tight as she ever had.

            "Felix, I'm going to kill you!" she muttered, though it was obvious she didn't mean it. He hugged her back, still grinning, and Picard and Ivan just stared. 

            "Lemurian," Ivan finally said in measured tones.

            "Contigan," Picard replied just as evenly. 

            "You knew?"

            "Since early morning. I felt it too, you know."

            "And you didn't _tell_ us?"

            "Well it wasn't as though he looked then like he does now!" Picard said in an offended tone. "I had something to do with that too. Jenna just gave him a starting point."

            "And for some reason Spark and Tinder wouldn't work," Jenna was saying, still rather hysterical but much calmer than she'd been moments ago. "I can't believe it, Felix. Everyone thought…we all thought you would die."

            "What, and let you three try to figure out how to get home without me? Hardly." Felix's grin let them know he was quite definitely joking. "So, anyone hungry?"

            "Great minds do think alike," Ivan said, ignoring the expected query as to what that had to do with either him or Felix. Jenna and Felix, Cura following close behind, walked out of the room. Ivan began to follow as well, but turned back to look at Picard, who was still grinning up at the perfect summer sky.

            "Picard, the air and sky are supposed to be _my _fascinations, not yours. Besides, we have to think of a way to get back to Gondowan, and you're the sailor. Mariner. Wait, what _are_ you now? How many of your Djinn are set?" Picard finally turned his gaze from the window and looked at Ivan. 

            "You are mad," Picard said, shaking his head and smiling.

            "Good. It'll rub off on the rest of you. Now come on, Lemurian, let's get lunch."

+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+

            "There aren't any boats here," the Elder said. She had joined Cura and the Adepts for lunch, and they were now discussing exactly how the four were ever going to leave Sinelsol. 

            "This could complicate things," Picard said, a phrase that struck a chord of familiarity in Jenna's mind and, by the Mercury Adept's raised eyebrow, was meant to do just that.

            "Ever one for stating the obvious, weren't you?" Jenna asked in mock sarcasm.

            "You could have just said something," Picard reiterated.

            "I did. You denied any such idea. So I proved by example."

            "Right. You also proved that one should never attempt such without Psynergy."

            "Well, you know, that's twice you owe me."

            "Only once. I repaid one last week, with that…what did you call it?" Picard asked the Elder, who was obviously quite amused by this discussion. 

            "Tartarian. The essence of darkness, ruled by and ruling eternal fire. But that problem is no longer a problem," the Elder added. "What is a problem is getting you four home, with no way to send a message because we have no boat, and therefore no way to send you." 

            "A message? I can do that," Ivan said. "I can reach Sheba with my…wait. She's too far away to contact with what little Psynergy I have. She might be too far even if I was at full power."

            "Send a Djinni," Felix suggested. "One that used to be Sheba's might have an easier time finding her."

            "Right. Ether!" The Jupiter Djinni appeared in the air. "First, unleash yourself on our dear Lemurian friend there—"

            "Why me?" Picard asked.

            "Because you get grumpy when you've got no Psynergy. And then go find Sheba, and tell her to tell Isaac to bring the boat here, and that you'll lead them. Can you do that?"

            "Sure, why not?" Ether said. The flash of violet as she unleashed, then the purple streak as she rushed from the building, took barely two seconds total to happen. 

            "I suppose," Jenna said, a mischievous glint in her eye, "that we'll all just have to wait _patiently_ for their return." At this, she, Picard, Felix, Cura and the Elder laughed heartily. Ivan, looking around at them, failed to see the joke. Something else, though, he did pick up on.

            "I should have seen it before," he said in surprised tones.

            "Seen what?" Felix asked.

            "I'm surrounded."

            "By?"

            "You people," Ivan said, motioning to everyone gathered. "You…healers."

            "Secondary profession only," Jenna said, raising her hands in surrender.

            "Not me, boy," the Elder said. "I'm a Jupiter Adept."

            "We're not sure what I am, really," Cura said reflectively. "I'd like to think Mars, though. I despise cold."

            "We could always switch around the Djinn until you were satisfied, Ivan," Picard suggested.

            "No. Just…no. The last time we did that, Jenna ended up with all three stages of Ply, Sheba was summoning plants from the ground, Garet was using Frost—"

            "He had the Frost Gem," Jenna pointed out.

            "—and I had some odd name that really just wasn't me. Chaos King or some such."

            "Chaos Lord," Felix corrected. 

            "Right, that." Something else hit Ivan quite suddenly. "By the god of thunder. It was Kraden."

            "What was?"

            "That troublesome old man who caused this problem. It _had_ to be Kraden. When I see him again…well, let's just say I've got plans."

            "Oh, Ivan, behave," Jenna said. "At least you didn't grow up living in his village."

+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+

            The Adepts spent about another week on Sinelsol Island. Much of Felix's time was spent rebuilding some of the houses that had been knocked down by the giant Chimera monster in that battle so long ago. 

            Ivan spent his days either atop the cliff just standing in the steady breeze or in the Elder's library, reading various things that he thought might be useful.

            Picard supervised the beginning of the construction of a ship, helping when he needed to. The people of Yueivar were hard workers, though, and seldom required his assistance. 

            Jenna and Cura spent most days helping Felix and the villagers, but when there was free time, they swapped stories. Sinelsol wasn't that boring of a place, and Cura was always happy to hear about any of the Adepts' adventures or numerous mishaps. Jenna was in the middle of one such story when they arrived.

            "And we went into Magma Rock, which I loved mostly for the fire element being present everywhere but also just because it's fun to watch Felix and Isaac be wary for once in their lives, and Garet walks in, mentions the intense heat, and falls down a flight of stairs."

            "Two flights," said a voice behind her. Jenna turned, and smiled. "Hello, Jenna."

            "Hey Garet. You survived whatever it was you four were doing, huh?"

            "We had more fun than you did."

            "Doubtful," Picard said, leading the other Adepts to where Jenna, Garet and Cura were. "You have no idea of all the fun we have had here."

            "I might," Sheba said, looking up at Felix. "With your permission," she added, and Felix nodded. Sheba used Mind Read, and a long string of images entered her mind, each one surprising her more than the last. She used her Psynergy on Ivan, Jenna and Picard as well. Grinning, she shared these thoughts with Isaac, Garet and Mia.

            "And I missed all the fun?" Isaac asked with a laugh. "Felix, you get killed more often than I do."

            "Am I dead?"

            "No. But I've never…well, ok, but that was only once."

            "Once my left foot," Mia said. "It was several times. More than Garet could count on both hands."

            "Never more than ten," Garet said, shaking his head. "Five, maybe, but no more."

            "I wonder if it eventually becomes a permanent residence?" Ivan asked. Ether appeared then, shaking what passed for her head.

            "You eight are as bad as us, and we number seventy-two," she said condescendingly. "Act your species."

            "What do you expect?" asked Bane's voice from somewhere near Isaac. "They're only human, after all."

            That day, with Picard's boat sufficiently restocked for the trip back, and Isaac saying that it was a good thing Picard hadn't taken his winged ship to Lemuria or it would have wrecked, and Picard arguing that Lemurian-made ships weren't nearly as dangerous as that one from Lalivero, the Adepts were ready to go.

            "Promise you'll visit. We might get giant monsters again and we need Adepts who can take them out," Cura said with a wink.

            "You might be able to do that on your own, you know," Felix said.

            "Just don't throw any more weapons at people on your side," Ivan added with a smile.

            "Goodbye then," Cura said, and the Elder nodded, smiling wide.

            "You know," Picard said in a calm voice, "in Lemuria, we do not have a true word for goodbye. The closest I can come is 'until next we meet.'"

            "Until next we meet, then," Cura said, and all eight Adepts nodded. Isaac placed his hand on the wheel and the ship began to move, slowly at first and then faster, as bit by bit the Adepts left Sinelsol Island behind.

            "We'll be back there," Sheba said. "Somehow I just know it."

            "It'd be a crime not to go back," Garet said. "They've got great food."

            "Nice breezes," Ivan added.

            "Caves, and mountains," Felix put in. 

            Eventually every Adept except two engaged in this conversation. Isaac stood at the wheel, every bit the confident leader he'd been since the beginning, and Picard leaned against the side rail, staring up at the sky.

            "Something interesting up there?" Isaac asked.

            "Are you familiar with the phrase, 'you never know what you have until you lose it'?" Picard asked distantly.

            "I am."  
            "It is truth. We were without the sun for, at most, four days, and I have known rain clouds to hover for longer and yet never felt such a loss as I did on Sinelsol Island. So yes, Isaac, there is something very interesting up there."

            "And that is?" Isaac asked with a hint of a grin.

            "Our golden sun," Picard replied, smiling for all he was worth.

-------------------------------------------------------

Vil: All's well that ends happy, I suppose. So? Should there be a return trip in the Adepts' future? (the FAR future—ALWHI's got to finish sometime.) Review with comments and questions and whatever else!!

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